Success of AVG combat tactics over China, and heavy losses of Ki-27 and Ki-43 fighters over Nomonhan II dictate change in aircraft design philosophy within IJAAF and IJNAF operational planning.

Ki-27/Ki-43 replaced by Ki-44 and Ki-61 fighters in IJAAF.

A6M-2 Zero is replaced by alternate aircraft – more likely the improved, armoured and more heavily armed A6M8 version of the Zero (in actual history only 1 prototype built in 1945) but we can assume Ki-84 co-operatively built by Mitsubishi/Nakajima and navalised.

E. Tweaked Battle of Midway

Occurs in May 1944, following Pearl Harbor and Philippines attacks in December 1943.

Assume for operational reasons – the same 4 Japanese carriers and 3 US carriers meet at Midway.

Japanese Strength:

These numbers are from the Japanese carrier airfleet strengths at the Battle of Philippines Sea (real history) and are for comparison of aircraft numbers based on larger aircraft (though possibly also affected by reduced availability of aircrews)

The Kawanishi N1K was built to JNAF specifications and theNakajima Ki.84 was built to JAAF specifications. I'm sure each branch of the service thought they had

the better aircraft.

That's what I don't believe. I can imagine that at Nakajima's the construction team that worked for the army was not allowed to talk to navy representatives and vice versa. The service branches completely ignored the other one's aircraft. A typically Axis failure of planning and communication. Quoting Francillon, the N1K was not even built to specifications. Kawanishi had leftover resources due to lack of demand for the Kyofu floatplane fighter.

I did look through my new book again and I did not see any reference to the JNAF

other than for the use of the same engines.

Thank you for looking!

During the first days of the German invasion of Poland in 1939, some Polish pilots in Pz.11 biplanes managed to shoot down Bf-109's simply because the German flyers were inexperienced.

That doesn't make much sense. Polish pilots were inexperienced as well. German pilots might have had an experience advantage because the could have fought already in the Spanish Civil War. Don't know if there were many Polish volunteers there (and if, I mean they probably would have chosen the Franco side as well for their authoritarian system at home and their catholicism, btw, the Pz. 11 is a high-wing plane, not a biplane, we can be a picky bunch, as Kutscha uses to state).

And sorry Geoff for not yet agreeing to your scenario, it is way too complicated for a quick answer.

No, not complicated....relevant stuff is from point (E) onwards. The preamble points (A) to (D) are just background flavour to paint a scenario where carrier based Ki-84s and F4Us might have met with sufficient experienced air crews and carrier commanders to have not ended in a Mariannas Turkey Shoot style slaughter.

I suspect the long term war results are not going to end too dissimilarly to "real" history, but the "tweaked" Battles of Midway, Eastern Solomons and Santa Cruz might have ended slightly differently.